The "ea" Sound in "Leaf"

Welcome back to Read Not Guess. Today we’re going to work on the “ea” sound like in the words “eat” or “team.”

Both parent and child will need to be able to see the screen.

Let’s get started.

Today’s Letter Sounds

Explain to your child that the "ea” letter combination can make the long “eee” sound. Have them point to the letters as they read the word “eat:”

l ea f

leaf

Did they get it right? Make sure they’re reading it as one word (“leaf”) and not adding extra sounds (like “luh-eee-fuh”).

Let’s do some more:

ea t

eat

And:

m ea t

meat

And:

t ea m

t eam

team

And:

b ea ch

b each

beach

And:

wh ea t

wheat

And:

ch ea t

cheat

And:

f ea r

fear

Let’s finish with a couple harder ones:

st ea l

steal

And:

mis lead

mislead

And:

l ean ed

leaned

Did they remember the "-ed" rule? Words with a "d" or "t" make the full "ed" sound, but in words like "leaned" it's just adding a "d" at the end.

Silly Sentences

See if your child can read these:

Do you hear me? Is that clear?

A rich creamy milkshake is the best treat in the world.

Jane had eaten too much.

If they read them smoothly, great! If they stumble, have them keep practicing.

That’s it for today. We’ll see you next time.